I encountered this position with a client not too long ago. The incumbent design was a modal popup/overlay like the article references -- converted reasonably well, but users hated it and it felt sleazy and off-brand. The challenge was to implement something that didn't drive users crazy, and converted as well (or better). I designed several treatments which we tested against the incumbent design -- we ended up with something like this: http://dribbble.com/shots/1121315-slide-in-prompt

Would be curious to see other alternatives people have tried, especially if they have conversion data (anecdotal or otherwise).

Neat. I always love reading these, and performing them informally with relatives of mine when I get the chance. I don't fully agree with all of your proposed solutions (e.g. I think the unintuitive nature of the tabs interface in Safari can be attacked at a more fundamental level, and demonstrated explicitly the first time, as opposed to a separate 'mode' that is really an interface band-aid), but enjoyed reading it quite a bit. The fact that several of the stock 'data app' icons (weather, stocks, clock), really do imply a live data display, when in fact the icons are static, had never occurred to me before.

Totally agree with what you said. But! "Most people" don't download apps the day they come out. Most people that end up downloading this app will be able to use it immediately. As it is, the early-adopting, first-in-lining, app-tweeting crowd is busy promoting this app to their friends by comparing their number in line -- effectively saying, without even having used the app: "man...this thing is really worth waiting for. better get in on it now!" I'd bet that their friends who download the app today ~won't delete it. They'll just close it. And get a push notification in a couple days telling them that they're in. That's tens of thousands of users they wouldn't have touched without this launch strategy.

Personally, I tip my hat to these guys for architecting this launch strategy...and cringe for the inevitable hoard of apps/services that will surely attempt to copy it.

Thank you for posting. The notion that Serif typefaces are objectively more readable/usable has always bugged me as one of those "facts" that people repeat because they heard it somewhere else, not because it's true.

On the very rare occasions where I'm forced against my will to interact with our HR portal, I'm convinced that it's some kind of UX reality/horror show and that Jared Spool is going to jump out any moment wearing a trucker hat and tell me I've been Punk'd.